Love Hurts
by Rossignol1984
Summary: Seth and Summer deal with life after college and need to face the consequences of mistakes they make...


**Chapter 1**

Beep Beep Beep Beep Beep…  
What terrible noise was that? Summer put her pillow over her head to shut out this awful sound. Still, the beeping continued. Only slowly she realized that it was her alarm clock that had snapped her out of her sleep.  
Summer put her pillow away and hit the alarm clock with her fist. Finally, the beeping stopped.  
Unnerved, Summer lay back into her soft pillows, closing her eyes again. She rubbed her temples. A terrible headache was coming up, and there was nothing she hated more.  
Summer turned around once again and tried to remember what had happened that caused her such a bad headache.

Right! She and her friends had graduated from college yesterday. She was now officially an adult who needed to go to work every day and earn her own money. But why was the headache? Oh, right. For once in her life, Marissa had persuaded her that they needed to celebrate that they were finally free – and Marissa's sense of celebrating was drinking.

Summer sat up in her bed, sighing deeply. After the graduation party, Seth, Marissa, Ryan and her had been going to Los Angeles, moving from club to club until like six in the morning. And if they hadn't been so drunk, Seth and Ryan couldn't have persuaded them to finally go home.  
Yap, that explained the headache. But it still didn't explain why her alarm clock had jingled in what seemed like the middle of the night. Summer tried to concentrate and find out why she had to get up. It would have been a lot easier if thinking wouldn't hurt so much.

Suddenly, her cell phone started to ring in an merciless volume. Summer jumped in her bed and reached over to her nightstand to see who dared to call her when she wasn't officially up yet.  
The display showed the picture of Seth she had taken years ago. Summer smiled. Only Seth was allowed to call her whenever he wanted. She picked up.  
"Hey," she said happily, rubbing her head. She shouldn't have talked so loud.  
"Hey Summer. How are you?" Seth asked.  
Summer yawned and leant back into her pillows. "I think I have the world's worst hangover," she announced, rubbing her forehead again. "What about you?"  
Seth laughed. "If you remember correctly, I drove yesterday, I didn't have a drop to drink. We were just wondering where you are."  
Summer frowned. Who, we? And where should she be after a night like the night before? "Cohen, what are you talking about?" she asked.   
"It's three p.m., we were supposed to meet Ryan and Marissa at the Diner, don't you remember?"  
"Cohen, I've had like a million drinks yesterday, this is probably the last thing I would remember after a night like that."  
Seth laughed. "Well, the others are already here," he said. "Just try to hurry, we're waiting for you."  
Summer looked at her watch. Now she knew why her alarm had jingled. She jumped out of her bed. "Sure, Cohen, I'm coming. See ya."  
And in a speed that was even surprising herself, Summer got ready and was on her way to the Diner. 

Summer's head was still spinning when she pulled into the parking lot of the pier, even though she had taken like a ton of aspirin to get rid of this hangover feeling. She locked her car and jogged over to the Diner to find her three friends sitting at their favourite table. "Hi you guys," she chimed, waving over to Marissa and Ryan and giving Seth a kiss. She sat down next to Seth who had already ordered coffee for her.  
"So how is everyone?" she asked.  
Marissa smiled playfully at her best friend. "We are fine, how are you?"  
Summer raised her eyebrows. "I am so fine you don't believe it." she announced.  
The group laughed. It was obvious that Summer still had to fight the consequences of her little drinking session the night before.  
Summer examined Marissa. "Hey Coop, how come that I have like the world's worst hangover and you seem like totally normal?"  
Ryan laid his arm around Marissa's shoulders and smiled teasingly at her. "Marissa had a lot of practice over the years," he said. Marissa gave him a slight punch in the ribs. "Thank you very much." she said, playing to be offended but loosing her seriousness when Ryan started to tickle her.  
Seth and Summer laughed as well. Seth took Summer's hand under the table and squeezed it. The two of them smiled at each other lovingly. Their little flirt was interrupted when Marissa started to talk again.   
"I'm gonna miss this, you guys…" she said, looking sad. "I mean, now that we all go separate ways…"  
"Who says we're gonna go separate ways?" Seth asked, looking at Ryan knowingly. Ryan grinned back at him. "Right, who says we do?"  
Summer and Marissa frowned at each other, trying to find out what their boyfriends were up to.  
"What game are you guys playing?" Summer asked, seeming to be suspicious.  
Seth pulled her closer and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "You'll see. Finish up your coffees, each of you gets a little surprise."  
Summer looked from Seth back to Ryan. "I hate surprises." she announced.  
Seth grinned. "Trust me, you'll like this one."

**Chapter 2**

„Cohen, where are we going?"  
With every second that passed, Summer became more and more impatient. Seth had been acting extremely mysterious since they had left the Diner and separated from Ryan and Marissa. Summer was even forced to wear a blindfold so that she didn't see where the trip was ending.  
When Seth didn't answer, Summer became angry. "I've had enough, Cohen, I'm putting this off!" she announced. Just when she was about to rip the blindfold off, she felt Seth's hand coming from the driver's seat, taking hers and leading them back into her lap.  
"These little things better stay there," he said, smiling. "We'll be there in just a few minutes, so hold on ," Seth said and grinned at himself. He really enjoyed playing this little game with his girlfriend.  
"I can't take it anymore, Cohen," Summer moaned, "I feel all sick to my stomach, this stupid blindfold ruins all my eye make up and it's so damn hot in that stupid car!"  
Seth laughed. "God, Summer, just hold it for another second, we'll be there soon! Isn't this fun?"  
Summer frowned. "This is so not fun, Cohen! I have the most terrible headache in the history of headaches, and it doesn't get any better when I don't see anything… moreover, you are still able to see!"  
Seth shook his head as Summer went on complaining about how miserable she felt in this situation.

Just two minutes later, Seth pulled the car into a big parking lot, and helped Summer get out of it.   
Seth took Summer's hand. "Do you feel better now?" he asked kindly.  
"I'll feel better when I'm finally getting rid of this thing here," she moaned, pointing to the blindfold in front of her eyes.  
"Well, then you better follow me," Seth replied, acting mysteriously.

After a few steps, the two of them stopped in front of a beautiful beach house which Summer wasn't able to see yet.  
"Cohen, why are we stopping?" Summer asked. Seth sighed. Summer could get really annoying at times.  
"Okay, do you promise me you'll stop asking questions when I take this blindfold off?" he asked, getting more and more unnerved by every minute.  
Summer's face lightened up. "Yeah, I promise!" she chimed, getting excited.  
Seth threw a gaze at the house and prepared to give Summer her eyesight back. "Okay, Summer… get ready for…" The blindfold was ripped off. "Your new home!"

Summer couldn't believe her eyes. In front of her there was a pretty beach house, just enough for two people to live there. The house was surrounded by big palm trees, and had a beautiful green garden behind it, with a huge pool and patio.  
Summer looked rotational from Seth to the house and back. She was definitely speechless about this sweet romantic gesture. When she finally found her self-control again, she jumped right into Seth's arms. "Oh, Cohen, I LOVE it!" she yelled, kissing Seth on the cheek. "You really bought this for us?"  
Seth grinned proudly at his girlfriend. "Actually, my parents did. But since we already lived together in college this shouldn't be a problem either."  
Summer let out a happy laugh. "This is so cool!" she chimed and gave Seth a soft kiss on the lips. "Thank you so much."  
Seth smiled at Summer, looking her straight into her deep brown eyes. He was so happy to see his girlfriend so enthusiastic. "You're welcome." He replied, kissing her back. "Oh, and you don't know the best thing yet," he proudly announced.  
Summer frowned. "What do you mean?"  
Seth pointed down the road. "Just like about two miles from here, Marissa's getting introduced into her new home right now."  
Summer jumped happily, clapping her hands. "You mean we're like almost neighbors? This is the best thing ever!"  
Seth grinned. "You see, nothing's gonna change for us, the four of us will always be together," he said, stroking a strand of Summer's dark brown hair behind her ear.  
"We'll be friends forever," Summer answered happily, leaning into Seth's protective arms and looking at the beautiful house that was supposed to become her home with the man she loved. This was gonna be the best life ever.

Just one week after Seth had surprised Summer with their new home, they were moving into the cute beach house. Each of them brought some of their furniture in, and the rest had been bought by their parents. Summer was completely happy and looked forward to spend her life with Seth.  
In the evening, Ryan and Marissa came over to celebrate the induction into the new home. While Seth and Ryan were cooking on the grill, Marissa and Summer sat by the pool, each of them letting their legs hang into the cool water.  
"This place is so great, Sum," Marissa said after looking around the beautiful backyard.  
Summer grinned broadly. "I know," she said, proud swinging in her voice. "Don't we have the best boyfriends ever?"  
"Yeah, we do." Marissa replied, looking over to the two young men, and smiling to herself. She turned her attention back to Summer. "Hey, Sum, I have some really big news for us!"  
"Really? Tell me!"  
Marissa put her legs out of the pool and sat cross-legged on the patio. "You know the trust fond my mom and dad have for me? For some strange reason they wanted to give me the money when I was 25." She paused, letting the information sink in.  
"So?" Summer didn't quite understand where this conversation was heading.  
"Well, they decided to give me the money now," Marissa said, smiling. "And this means I can use it for whatever I want."  
Summer patted Marissa on the leg. "That's great, Coop, do you have any plans yet?"  
Marissa hesitated. "This might sound stupid, but… I thought about opening a fashion store… with you."  
Summer was overwhelmed. That was the sweetest thing Marissa had ever told her. "Really Coop, you want us to be partners?"  
Marissa nodded shyly. "I already have a property and some designers I met during college – everything fashion studies brings along."  
Summer stood up and opened her arms towards Marissa. "That's so sweet, Coop! I'd love to work together with you!"  
Marissa got up as well and the two girls hugged tightly.  
"Come on, let's get some drinks, we need to celebrate," Summer announced, walking into the house.  
Marissa ran after Summer, trying to keep her best friend's pace. "Hey Sum, you're really getting used to that alcohol thing, don't you?"

Seth and Ryan stood next to the grill, watching their girlfriends stroll off into the house.  
"Looks like I'm a house husband now," Seth said dryly, turning his attention back to the meat on the grill.  
Ryan smiled. "What about the offer you got from Jeff? Aren't you gonna take it?" he asked.  
Jeff Richards had been Seth's guardian during his graphic design studies and had offered him a well-paid job at his comic book company after college graduation. Seth shrugged. "You know Summer hates the idea of me being involved into anything related to comics. It was hard enough to convince her not to kill me when I started studying graphic design."  
Ryan laughed, thinking back at that time. "Well, then you need to figure out something else," he said.  
Seth nodded and stared onto the grill. "Well, what about you? I heard Mom offered you a job?"  
"Yeah, she did." Ryan answered.  
When nothing else came as an answer, Seth became nervous. "Ryan, don't do this silence thing again. Are you gonna take it?"  
Ryan took a sip from his soda. "What, the job? I guess so, Monday's my first day."  
Seth laughed and patted Ryan on the shoulder. "That's great, man. Ryan Atwood, architect. Sounds good… Now that everyone has a job, we can concentrate a little more on what's going to happen with me, I think maybe I should…"

"Cohen! Atwood! Come over here, we need to celebrate!" Before Seth could go on, he was interrupted by Summer who balanced a tray with four glasses on her right hand and carried a bottle of sparkling whine in her left. Marissa follwed her with some candles.  
"Summer, we were just talking!" Seth complained.  
Summer sat the tray down on the table and waved with her hand. "No protest, we need to celebrate now! I have some big big news for you!"  
"I heard them, you squeaked loud enough." Seth said, putting down his grill fork and following Ryan to the table.  
Summer poured the whine into the glasses. "Well, then you should drink with me more than ever!"  
Seth couldn't help but smile. Seeing Summer so happy made him happy as well, even if he was still worried about his job problem.  
The four raised their glasses. "To us!" They shouted in unison, and Summer added happily, "Friends forever".  
After the first sips of the sparkling whine had been taken, Summer went over to Seth and hugged him tightly.  
"I love you," she whispered in his ear and gave him a kiss on the cheek.  
Seth smiled down at his beautiful girlfriend. "I love you too." He replied, stroking Summer's hair softly.  
Summer lay her face into Seth's chest. "You know what?"  
"What?"  
"I think you should take the job Jeff offered you."  
Seth looked surprised. "Why the mood swing?"  
Summer shrugged. "With this fashion store, my dream comes true, and I just don't see why I should ban you from yours. I mean, we're adults now, and a stupid comic won't come between us, right?"  
Seth grinned broadly. "You mean that?" he asked happily.  
Summer lent back and looked at her boyfriend teasingly. "Say yes or I'll rethink it," she threatened.  
"Okay okay, I'm gonna call Jeff first thing in the morning," he replied, and his eyes sparkled. He turned to Ryan and Marissa. "You know what?"  
"What?" Ryan asked.  
Seth grinned down on Summer who still hugged him. "I have the hell of a girlfriend."

**Chapter 3**

The following weeks went by in an incredible pace. Seth loved his work at the comic book company. He earned a lot of money, and most important of all, he did the job he had always dreamt of.  
Ryan and Marissa had moved into their new home as well and had put up a familiar atmosphere. Ryan enjoyed every day at his work for the new Newport Group. He had just gotten his first project he had to supervise alone. It was only the construction of a new church in the neighbor community, but still it was the best basis for a national career as an architect.  
Marissa and Summer blossomed totally out with the organisation of the new fashion shop. Marissa had rented a lovely little shop near the South Coast Plaza, Newport's most important shopping center. Right now, the girls were about to renovate the facility, and right after that, they could start to search for some designers who wanted to sell in their shop. And maybe, if everything went how the girls planned it, they soon would be able to create their own collections of clothes.

With all those big fantastic things happening, Summer knew that she was living the best days of her life. She could not imagine that her bliss would stop anytime soon.  
And although all of the four spend so much time on their new jobs, they always found the time to go out and have fun, just like the way it had been during High School and College.

It was one of those nights when the four of them had decided to go out together when Summer's bliss stopped abruptly.  
Seth and her had only come home from work and wanted to relax a little before heading out again.  
The cuddled up against each other on the couch and kissed.  
"Mmm… this feels gooood", Summer noticed and kissed Seth more passionately.  
Seth smiled. "I know, it does," he answered.  
Summer went back a little to face her boyfriend and frowned. "You're praising yourself for being a good kisser?"  
Seth grinned back at her. "Sure, I know that I am," he replied in a very confident tone.  
Summer started to giggle. "Well, only you think like that," she said teasingly and started to laugh when Seth started to tickle her. She hit him with her fists in the arms, trying to make him stop.

After a few minutes, Seth stopped and started to kiss Summer passionately. This was just perfect. The sun setting in the distance, illuminating the ocean in the most beautiful colors that one could imagine, the warm summer breeze flowing through the air, and the woman he loved in his arms.  
Their romantic moment was destroyed when the telephone started to ring.  
"Don't get it," Seth pleaded, continuing to kiss Summer.  
Summer softly shoved him away. "I need to get it, maybe it's Marissa…" She couldn't continue since a huge kiss was set onto her lips. Well, the stupid telephone would stop.  
Unfortunately, it didn't. After it had rung almost a minute, Summer managed to get free from Seth's embrace and headed for the phone. Maybe it was really urgent.

Seth leant back into the pillows of the couch, enjoying the view over the ocean while he waited for Summer to get rid of the caller.  
Summer picked up the receiver. "Hello? … Yes, speaking."  
Seth watched Summer as her expression faded from happy to shocked. A hand went up to her mouth, the color draining from her face.  
Seth said up straight. There was something wrong going on.  
"I'll be there as fast as I can," he heard Summer say and watched her laying down the receiver with shaky hands. He stood up and walked over to his girlfriend, a concerned look on his face.  
Summer sat down, looking desperately into Seth's eyes. "That was the hospital," she whispered. "My Dad had a huge car accident, it looks really bad."  
Seth laid a hand on Summer's shoulder, trying to comfort her. "Come on, we'll need to go there," he said, guiding her towards the door. "Everything's gonna be fine, you'll see."

Before Seth's car came to a stop in the hospital's parking lot, Summer jumped out and ran into the emergency room, leaving Seth behind. Her heart raced as she entered the busy halls of the clinic, seeing doctor's and nurses rushing through the doors.  
Summer needed to find out where her father was. "Excuse me…" No one heard her. She stood in the middle of all that hectic, and no one had time to stop and tell her what was happening. "Excuse me!" Summer's voice became more urgent as she tried to find some help.  
Finally, a very young doctor stopped in front of her. "Can I help you, Miss?"  
Summer took a deep breath. "My name's Summer Roberts, someone called me and said that my father had a car accident…"  
"I'm sorry, Miss, I don't know about that. Go to the reception, they'll help you there." And with that words, Summer was left alone.  
With every second that passed she felt more and more adrenaline pouring through her veins. Why didn't anyone come and help her?  
Since Summer didn't see anybody behind the reception desk, she decided the best way to find her father was to search him herself.  
She started to walk slowly through the many halls, peeking into every room in the hope to see her father. When she didn't spot him in the first few rooms, she began to ran hectically, her breathing becoming heavier with every second that passed.  
At the end of a long hall with green floor tiles, there were a dozen of nurses and doctor's leaning over a lifeless body in a trauma room. One of the doctors gave the patient a heart massage, another one gave him oxygen.   
Summer couldn't see who the patient was. She just stood there paralized and watched the doctor's fighting for the patient's life. For some strange reason, this patient's fate touched her deeply. Would he or she be able to make it?  
Summer saw the doctor's shouting orders at each other and the nurses running hectically around.  
Suddenly, all the action stopped. The doctor who had given the patient the heart massage leant back. He looked exhausted. All the action that had been in the room only a few moments before changed into a strange silence. The hospital staff left the patient, one of them pulling out the breathing tube. The sight of the patient was free now.  
And when Summer saw who was lying there, her blood froze.

When Seth came running around the corner of the hall, he spotted Summer standing in front of a trauma room, staring shocked into the scenery that was going on in there.  
When the doctor's left the room and the patient in there, Seth couldn't believe his eyes. There was Summer's father, covered in his own blood, his body lying lifeless in the middle of the huge room.  
Seth ran over to Summer immediately. He stopped next to her and examined her face.  
His girlfriend stood there motionless, staring into the trauma room, her face completely pale, and her hands shaking uncontrollably. Slowly, Seth saw Summer's head turning towards him, her dark brown eyes searching his. One of her hands pointed to the patient in the room in front of them. "That's my Dad," she whispered.  
Seth laid an arm around Summer's shoulders, trying to comfort her. He nodded.   
Summer's gaze went back to her dead father.

Suddenly, as if some locks had been opened, she started to cry. Only a little at first, but after a few moments, a whole river of tears streamt down her face, trying to compensate the huge pain she was feeling inside. When she couldn't stand the pain anymore, Summer threw herself into Seth's protective arms, burying her head into his chest. This couldn't be happening. This was just a nightmare, and she would wake up soon.  
When Seth hugged her as tight as he could, Summer knew that she wasn't dreaming.  
The nightmare was reality.

**Chapter 4**

Summer stared at herself in the mirror. She was so young and had lost her father, the only person of her family who really cared for her. She still couldn't believe how her life had changed from happy and sorrow-free to sad and depressing. The loss of her father seemed to have rid a huge hole into her soul, one that didn't seem to be filling anymore.

There was only one hour left before her Dad's funeral would start, and she needed to get ready now.  
Seth came into the bathroom and hugged her from behind.  
"How are you?" he asked kindly when he saw Summer's bloodshot eyes.   
"Terrible," she answered simply, leaning onto Seth. Despite all the pain and numbness she was feeling at the same time, being with Seth felt so good.  
"I don't know what I'd do without you," she whispered.  
Seth gave her a kiss on the head. "You're gonna get through this, I promise."  
Summer broke free of Seth's embrace and went over to the sink. "I need to wash up." she said. When she reached the sink, she stopped. Seth saw her shoulders slump down, her hands going to her face, and her body weeping from the pain. She turned around again.  
"I can't do this, Seth! How can I bury my father? What happens to all his belongings? I can't take care of all that… I'm not strong enough for that…"  
Before Summer broke down to her knees, Seth ran over and grabbed her. "You're not alone, Summer," he whispered, "I'm with you."   
Seth stroked Summer's head. There would be some rough couple of weeks coming up.

Seth scanned the crowd at the buffet.  
It seemed like almost whole Newport Beach had attended the funeral service of Dr. Roberts. Well, he had been a very popular man, and moreover, most of the women who were there had gotten new breasts, noses or even chins from him. The least they could do was to show up at his funeral service. Well, at least Summer's stepmom didn't attend the funeral service. She had been put to psychiatry for medication abuse right after she had collapsed at the news of her husband's death. Seth shook his head, feeling stupid for his thoughts.  
Suddenly, he saw Marissa coming over to him. "Hey, what are you staring at?" she asked, examining Seth's gaze.  
"Me? Nothing."  
Marissa laughed. "I know, lots of Dr. Roberts clients in here," she said. As if she felt guilty for laughing on a tragical event like this, she added. "I think you should go check on Summer. She's outside, and I guess she needs a little comfort from you."  
Seth nodded, patting Marissa on the shoulder when he left. "Thanks."

Summer stared at the ocean. The sun was setting on the horizon, illuminating the sky and the water underneath it in the most wonderful colors she had ever seen. Maybe her Dad was looking down on her right now.  
She sat on a bench in front of the Country Club, where the funeral service was held. All the people in there who didn't really care about her father. They were only there because otherwise, they would be the targets of gossip for the whole community. And she was tired of talking to people like that. She needed some time alone, and that was why she sat there.  
Summer was so lost in thought that she didn't hear the man who came out of the Club and cleared his throat. Only when he sat next to her on the bench, she was startled.   
"What do you want?" she snapped. She had never seen this guy, so what the hell did he do there?  
The guy smiled, his blue eyes shining as he did so. "I'm Eric Foster," he introduced himself. "I just want to say that I'm really sorry for your loss."  
Summer frowned. She was sceptic. There was something about this guy that made him seem really nice, and something that made you hate him right away.  
"Thank you," she mumbled, turning her gaze back to the ocean.  
Eric shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "So, why I'm here…"  
There was it. Again one of those damn people who wanted something from her. Why couldn't they leave her alone? Summer rolled her eyes and looked at him. "What?"  
"I'm a journalist for the Newport Times. And since Dr. Roberts was such a popular and established person in the community, I thought we might print something like a life portrait of him. And that's where I need some information from you about your father. His life achievements, how he grew up an so on."  
Summer stared at him in disbelievement, her eyes full of tears. She jumped up from the bench, totally in rage. "You gotta be kidding me!" she shouted. "Don't you guys have any respect for me? My father died! The least thing I think about is how to release an article about his life!"  
Eric held up his hands in apology. "Look, I understand if you're not ready yet…"  
"You're damn right that I'm not! I suggest you bugger off to where you came from and LEAVE ME ALONE!"  
Tears streamt down Summer's beautiful face as she ran away. Her sight was all blurry from her tears and she didn't know where she was heading to until Seth's arms caught her.  
Seth wrapped his arms around his girlfriend as tight as he could, signalizing her he would always be there for her.  
"Why did he leave me, Seth? Why did he leave me?" Summer sobbed into Seth's chest.  
Seth sighed. "I don't know," he answered. "I don't know."

**Chapter 5**

One week after the funeral, Summer needed to take care of all her Dad's belongings and his money. She sat on the living room floor, tons of documents and folders spread all around her. She rubbed her forehead to collect her thougts. She hadn't known that living and dying rich brought so much paperwork with it.  
Summer felt one of her headaches coming up and decided she needed to take a break. Seth was at work and it was only noon, so no one would be missing her if she sneaked out for a while to see Marissa.  
Without looking back, Summer grabbed her purse and headed for the door.

When she arrived at the place where Marissa was supposed to put up the shop, she grinned as the same situation she had just left unfolded in front of her eyes. There was Marissa, sitting on the floor of the almost finished store, lost in tons of paper, rubbing her head and trying to get some calculus done.  
Summer knocked on the opened door.  
Marissa looked up and her face lightened up. "Hey! Somebody nice!" she said, jumping up to hug Summer.  
"Yeah, I was getting crazy at home, so I decided I needed a break." Summer replied, hugging her best friend back.  
Marissa gave Summer a concerned look. "How are you?" she asked.  
Summer shrugged. "Numb. I don't feel anyting at all."  
Marissa nodded. "Hey, well you can help me around here! I definitely need some help on those finances over there, and the back walls aren't finished yet…"  
"Woah Coop, nooo way! I just escpaped those hell of numbers. I need a real break, as in coffee break."  
Marissa smiled. "Now we're talking," she replied and grabbed her jacket that hung over the counter in the middle of the room.

The girls went across the street for some coffee and bagels, and for the first time since her father had passed away, Summer felt good. Being with Marissa always made her feel that way.  
Marissa took a sip from her latté. "So, when can I expect you back for work? I could really use a hand over there," she said.  
Summer looked on the floor and sighed. Suddenly, she looked up and stared at Marissa.   
"I need to tell you something," she announced, biting her lip.  
Marissa frowned. "What is it? Did something else happen?"  
"No, nothing else… happened… it's just…." Another sigh escaped. "I don't think I can go on working with you."  
Silence started to fill the place. Summer was the first to find her speech again. "Listen, Coop, I know what you're thinking. I'd love to work with you more than anything, but…"  
Suddenly, Summer felt Marissa's hand on hers. "Don't worry, it's ok." She assured her. "I understand."  
Summer had to fight some tears. "Thank you… you know, there's just so incredibly much stuff to do and I don't know how to figure this out, let alone take over the responsibility of a whole fashion store…"  
A single tear fell down her cheek.  
Marissa stood up and came over to her friend, giving her a hug. "As I said, it's ok." She said again. It's totally normal that you need to concentrate on different things now."  
Summer smiled. She was so glad to have the best friends in the world.  
"But, you know… " Marissa continued, "that I need to find somebody else who can take your position."  
"Yeah, yeah, sure thing." Summer nodded and tucked a strand of her dark brown hair behind her ear.  
The girls fell silent again. Each of them stared at her cup of coffee, lost in her thoughts. Summer sighed.  
"This sucks," she noticed plainly.  
Marissa gave her a slight smile. "I guess that's the way life goes," she replied. "But you know, my door's always open for you. Whenever you decide to come back, just tell me. We'll figure this out."  
"That's the sentence I hear the most these days." Summer replied. "I just hope it's true."

Meanwhile, during Summer was at her coffee break with Marissa, Seth was at work, bringing some files Jeff had given him into order. He was so lost in concentration that he almost threw half of the files off his desk as Jeff suddenly began to speak.  
"Look at my best man," Jeff said proudly and walked over to Seth's desk.  
Seth smiled up at him. Jeff looked extremely happy. "What's up with you?"  
Jeff sat on a chair in front of Seth's desk.  
"I'm quite old, Seth," he started.  
Seth raised his eyebrows. This seemed to become a long and boring speech about life. These stories had always been Jeff's specialty, and Seth knew that interrupting his boss when he told one of them was probably the worst idea ever.  
"And I don't wanna spend the few years I have left stuck in an office like this one."  
Seth nodded, frowning. That was very interesting, but still, he had tons of work to do. He looked nervously around himself, trying to signalize Jeff to leave him alone.  
Jeff seemed to have noticed the nervous look on Seth's face. "To make long things short," he began. Seth's mood lightened up. He was really good at this.  
"Yeah?"  
"I'm going to retire next month, and I need somebody who can take over my company. Or moreover, make a new start."  
Seth nodded. He had no idea where this conversation was heading.  
Jeff went on. "You are one of the most talented graphic authors I've ever seen in my whole life. From all the people in this office, I believe that you are the one who's gonna be somebody someday."  
Seth felt honored from this nice words. "Thank you, Jeff, I really appreciate that."  
Jeff held up a hand. "Wait! Look, I don't wanna give my properties away to somebody I don't know. I wanna leave all of this", he pointed around him with his forefinger, "to someone I trust completely. And naturally, I thought of you."  
Seth opened his mouth in surprise. He hadn't seen this coming.  
Jeff smiled and stood up. "I'll leave you everything: the workers, the partners, the money – everything – when you promise to give your best with my little baby here."  
Seth stood up as well and shook his head in disbelievement. "Jeff, I don't know what to say. I feel so honored."  
"Well, you should be. I wouldn't have done this for everyone. But since I don't have any children, who should I give this company to? You're the best for the job. So what do you say?"  
Seth nodded and grinned broadly. "This company's gonna be as successful like usual. I promise."  
Both of the men shook hands. "Come to my office later. There's a lot of stuff to do." Jeff said and went off, leaving Seth, still standing behind his desk, and smiling like a child on Christmas Eve. He was totally enthusiastic and couldn't wait to tell Summer the big news.

**Chapter 6**

Summer had changed her position from sitting on the floor and trying to figure her Dad's finances out to the kitchen table. The place might have been better now, but the work was still unnerving. The headache she had this afternoon had disappeared, but now there was some sadness about the job she had given up today coming up.  
She sighed and got up to pour herself some coffee when she heard the back door that led into the kitchen fling open. She turned around and saw Seth standing there, grinning so hard she could see all his teeth. Frowning, Summer walked up towards him.  
"What happened to you?" she asked.  
Seth remained silent and kept on grinning instead.   
Summer rolled her eyes and was just about to turn around and walk back into the kitchen when Seth grabbed her arm.  
"Wait! You're not supposed to run away!"  
Summer became angry and shoved his hand away. "Let go of me!" she growled and made her way back to the kitchen.  
Seth looked disappointed. Like a little puppy, he started to walk after his girlfriend. "Don't you wanna know why I look like some kid on drugs?"  
Summer sighed again. "Course I do, that's why I asked you before!"  
Seth's shoulders slumped down. "You don't wanna hear it," he said offended.  
Summer rubbed her forehead. This couldn't be true. Why did she have to live with a little kid caught in an adult's body?  
She slowly sat down at the kitchen table, shoved some of the papers away and pegged her elbows on it.  
Seth sat next to her and laid an arm around her shoulder. "Is everything okay?" he kindly asked, concentrating hard on examining Summer's look on her face.  
Summer nodded silently and faced her boyfriend. She managed a sad smile. "So, I suppose you have some big news, huh?"  
At first, Seth hesitated to answer because he was not sure if Summer had told him the truth. But hey, she wanted to know what happened, so why not tell her?  
The grin came back. "I am gonna have my own comic book company!" Seth enjoyed every word he said, his smile getting even broader.  
Summer looked confused. "What? How?"  
"Jeff's retiring in a few weeks. And since I'm like a son to him – that's how he said it, by the way – he wants me to take over his company. I can give it a new name if I want to, but the staff and the money and everything that already exists is gonna be mine!"  
Summer's jaw dropped. "You're kidding!" she yelled, clapping her hands.  
Seth shook his head enthusiastically. "I'm not!"  
A huge laugh of joy escaped Summer's body. Laughing and feeling happy was so good. She jumped up from her chair and hopped on her boyfriend's lap. "This is incredible," she whispered while kissing Seth's cheeks. "I'm so happy for you."  
Seth smiled at her, his eyes shining from the excitement of the day.  
After looking each other deep in the eyes, they lost themselves in a deep, passionate kiss. 

The next day Summer felt incredibly good. She and Seth had had a wonderful night together. She had also told him that she had given up working with Marissa, and Seth promised that he'd be helping her with everything, whenever she needed him. That day, Summer was more in love with him than she had ever been before.

After a long forenoon of working through all her father's finances once again, Summer went out to the grocery store to get herself something to eat. She hadn't really had time to take care of the household with all the fateful events that had been going on the last couple of weeks. And even if she usually hated shopping for groceries – she had always been more the fashion–shopper type – the previous night had given her heart wings. Nothing could ruin her mood today. 

That was at least what she had thought until she arrived the cereals shelf in the store, where she spotted the journalist that had been wanting information from her the day of her father's funeral.  
Panicking, she hid her face behind a package of Cornflakes and tried to escape the hall as fast as she could. Unfortunately, her reaction hadn't been fast enough.  
"Excuse me!" She heard a male voice calling out after her. It was the voice of the journalist. Summer ran over to the next shelf and tried to concentrate on the items in it. But her gaze always went back to the direction the voice had come from.  
"Miss Roberts!" Summer felt a hand on her shoulder and spun around. "What do you think you're doing?" she yelled and recognized that deep blue eyes from the day of the funeral immediately. The look he gave her made her feel hot and cold at the same time.  
Eric held up his hands in apology. "I'm sorry if I frighten you." He said.  
Summer took a step back and straightened her top on her shoulder.  
"You should definitely stop doing that," she replied. She wanted to seem angry now but for some strange reason, she couldn't. "Giving chicks like me such a shock."  
Eric smiled and held out his hand. "I'm sorry, let's just start over. I'm Eric."  
Summer frowned. She didn't quite understand what the guy was up to, but she accepted his handshake. "Summer… but I think you know me."  
"Yeah, I'm sorry for that, too. I should've really been a little more tactful that day."  
Summer nodded. "Definitely. Like, say, you shouldn't have talked to me at all?"  
Eric laughed and looked on the floor.  
He had dimples. Summer loved dimples. Seth had some, too, but they weren't as gorgeous than those that were right in front of her. She immediately felt ashamed and tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear, examining the content of her shopping cart. What was happening inside of her? She felt like she was talking to a man for the first time in her life.  
"Well, if you have some time, I'd like to make my apology official. You wanna have coffee? My treat." He suggested, a sparkle in his eyes.  
Summer hesitated to answer. She needed to go home and go on with her Dad's work.  
"I promise I won't interview you on your father's life." Eric joked.  
Summer laughed. "You'll better not," she replied. "Cuz if you do, I'll kill you."  
Eric smiled at her and spun his shopping cart around. "Okay, it's settled then. I'll just have to finish my shopping, let's meet at the café over the street in like ten minutes?"  
"Okay. Ten minutes. See you then."  
They each waved goodbye and turned their attention to their shopping again.  
And she didn't even know why, but Summer was totally excited. She shook her head. This meant nothing. She just hadn't had coffee with anyone except for Seth, Marissa and Ryan for ages. She was just excited because she wasn't used to have coffee with strangers anymore.

Right?

**Chapter 7**

Summer hurried to get her shopping done, she didn't want to miss the coffee break with Eric. She went through the corridor as fast as she could. Just when she was about to go to the cashpoint, her cell phone rang.  
"Hello?"  
Nothing on the other line. Summer became nervous.  
"Hello?" she asked, this time more urgently.  
"Oh, yeah, hi Summer, it's me", Seth said.  
Summer blushed as if she was being trapped doing something forbidden. Well, she was about to, wasn't she?  
"Hey Cohen," she replied, guiding the shopping cart to the cashpoint. "What's up?"  
"I was wondering if you could come to my office… I have kind of a surprise for you."  
Summer smiled, but she was still stressed. "Okay Cohen, I'll be there as soon as I can", she said and hung up. She threw her long hair over her shoulder and sighed. Her gaze wandered around, searching for Eric. She needed at least to tell him that she wasn't able to make it for the coffee. She was interrupted by the cashier.   
"30 Dollars 35 Cents, Miss."  
Summer pulled out her puse and continued searching for Eric. When she didn't spot him anywhere around, she eventually gave up, payed and headed for the parking lot.   
She scanned the people there and didn't find Eric either.   
Well, he would understand. And even if he didn't, she shouldn't be caring at all… he was a complete stranger and would probably always be. And Seth wanted to see her, so that was way more important. 

Summer had never been to the office where Seth worked, and she had some trouble at first to find out where she needed to go. After a few minutes, she spotted her boyfriend behind a huge wooden desk in an office which gave an amazing view of Downtown Newport Beach.  
Seth was totally concentrated on his work and didn't hear her coming in.  
Summer cleared her throat. "Excuse me, am I right here for Seth Cohen?" she asked playfully.  
Seth looked up and smiled broadly. He went over to Summer and gave her a long kiss on the lips. Afterwars, he guided her to the chair in front of his desk.  
"Sit down," he said and gestured towards the chair.  
Summer looked around. "Pretty impressive, Cohen," she noticed. "I never thought that being in the comic business makes you work in such fancy places."  
Seth looked around his office proudly and nodded. "My career's been pretty amazing. I went from having no job to becoming the boss of a huge comic book company."  
Summer couldn't help but laugh. "Your career? This is cute…" she giggled. "You don't have a career, Cohen. That was just a geek's pure luck."  
Seth raised his eyebrows and looked at her. "Well, then I guess you don't mind if I occupy the job I was about to offer to you right now with somebody else," he said, searching through his files.  
Summer frowned. He wanted to give her a job? That was probably the cutest thing he had ever done for her.  
"You mean it?" she asked, still sceptical.  
Seth looked up again and walked over to her. He sat in the chair next to Summer and took her hands. "I know that the last couple of weeks have been really hard on you," he said, "and I also know that you're not so into the whole comic book thing that you might consider working in the business…" He looked her in the eyes. "But I know that you need time to get up on your feet again, and with the job I offer you, you'd have a lot less to worry about."  
Summer smiled at Seth. She couldn't believe that he was so kind and loving. She couldn't have made a better choice in men.  
She laid a hand on his cheek. "Thanks so much," she whispered. "That really means a lot. And I'll be happy to work in your office… as long until I get up on my feet again."  
Seth receded, looking surprised. He hadn't seen this coming. Never in a million years he would have thought Summer wanted to work in the comic book business.  
"Hey, why are you staring at me? Was my answer such a surprise?"  
"Yeah, to be honest, it was… you must be really desperate."  
"Desperate times need desperate acts," Summer replied and leant over to kiss Seth. "But as long as I have you, I'll not be desperate at all."

Just a few days after Summer had been offered the job, Seth had taken over the company. He was now officially a business man, and Summer couldn't have been prouder of him.  
And the best thing was, she didn't worry about Eric at all. She was just happy that her life might return to normal since her father had died. She knew that it was time to move on and let her Dad rest in peace.  
But even if she knew she shouldn't be looking back, sometimes the memories of what had happened that tragical night just came rushing back to her. 

It was Friday, and the whole day had been awful. Summer had awoken with a terrible headache, Seth had been at work almost until ten p.m., and all she thought about that day were the memories of her father and the night he died.  
And after she had been all alone the whole day, Summer was looking forward to be with Seth in the evening and telling him what was going on inside of her.

Seth was already lying in bed when she came out of the bathroom. He was studying some files he had brought home from work, and he didn't even notice her coming into the bed.  
Summer rolled over to Seth and cuddled up against him. "I missed you," she whispered, her finger softly tracing up and down Seth's breast. "Things have been really bad today."  
Seth's only reaction was a mumbled "uh-huh" and a scratching on his head.  
Summer frowned and pulled Seth's face towards her own to kiss him. Seth didn't give in and went on reading the file he held in his hands.  
Unnerved by being ignored, Summer sat up. "Are you even listening to me?" she asked reproachful.  
This time, Seth's head turned around and he looked her in the eyes.  
"I'm sorry, did you say something?" he asked.  
Summer sighed and turned her head away. "I said it's been an awful day for me," she repeated, her voice becoming angrier. "I kept thinking about my father all the time."  
Seth patted her on the thigh and focused on his files again. "You'll figure it out. I need to read this before I go to sleep," he replied.  
Summer stared silently into the distance. That was nice. Seth had been the head of the comic book company only a couple of days and still he was so focused on his work that he had ignored her almost all the time. And now she claimed only a few moments of his precious time to talk and he didn't listen.  
She angrily wrapped the sheets around her and turned her back towards Seth. "I need you," she sadly whispered into her pillow.  
"I'm sorry, didn't understand. Did you say something?" Seth asked again, but the question only seemed to be rethorical.  
Summer closed her eyes. "I said goodnight," she replied.

**Chapter 8**

The next day, Summer was on her own again. It was a Saturday, but that didn't stop Seth from being at work. Summer tried to understand that there was a lot he had to organize since the takeover of the company, but right now, her mood was so bad that she didn't care about the work he had. She would have needed her boyfriend to be there for her.   
When she sat at the kitchen table and had a cup of coffee, the telephone rang. Maybe that was Seth, inviting her over for lunch or something?  
Quickly, Summer jumped up and picked up the receiver.   
"Hello, Summer Roberts?" she identified herself, hoping so bad that Seth would answer.  
"Hello Summer, it's Eric."  
Summer felt herself blushing. She nervously tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "Hi, Eric… what a surprise…" she managed to say.   
Summer heard Eric laughing on the other end of the line. "I'm sorry, do I interrupt you with something?" he politely asked.  
"Oh no no no, I was just having some coffee…"  
"Coffee? How about we grab one together? Since you didn't show up last time?"  
Summer felt guilty about having left Eric that day without excusing herself. "Yeah, about that… I'm so sorry, but my boyfriend called, and I had to go see him…"  
"It's not a problem, really. Just don't keep me waiting in vain again. Let's say, at Al Forno's at one? Make the coffee a lunch?"  
Summer looked nervously around her. Seth wouldn't be home for at least more than six hours, and she couldn't stand the thought of being all alone all day.  
"Okay, Al Forno's, at one," she confirmed. "See you."  
After having checked the clock, Summer rushed into the bathroom to get herself ready.  
If Cohen could be away all day, she could be too.

When Summer arrived at the restaurant, Eric was already there. He wore a light blue polo shirt which underlined the bright color of his eyes and brought out his handsome figures. Summer couldn't help it, but she immediately felt attracted to him.  
Shoving the thought away and bringing an image of Seth into her mind, she went up to Eric and greeted him.  
She wanted to shake his hand, but instead of that, Eric gave her a soft kiss on the cheek to which Summer hadn't been prepared. She tried to be cool about it, but she wasn't able to hide the blush that was on her face.  
Eric smiled at her and opened the door. "Time for lunch!" he said, and they went in.

The waiter put a huge piece of chocolate cake in front of Summer. Eric smiled at her, and Summer smiled back.  
"Eric, I can't have a single bite anymore. It was so good, but it was so too much," she apologized.  
Eric shrugged and pulled the plate towards him. "Never mind, I'll have it," he replied.  
Summer laughed and laid her hand on top of Eric's to stop him. "Wait, if I think about it, I could use some chocolate right now." Eric smiled again and blinked at her. "I knew it." He said playfully and looked Summer deep in the eyes.  
For a moment, neither of them said a word, they just sat there, Eric totally concentrated on Summer's eyes and Summer trying to focus on her huge slice of chocolate cake.   
Eric was the first to find his speech again. "So, I hope you can forgive me for being so inpolite at your father's funeral."  
Summer nodded and smiled shyly. "Sure, forgiven and forgotten," she answered.  
Eric sighed and picked with his fork in Summer's pie. "You don't mind, do you?"  
Summer blushed again. Dear God, what was happening to her? She wasn't a teenager anymore, so why did she act like one. "Sure."  
Eric grabbed a huge bite of the cake and went on. "You know, I know how you feel on a day like this. The funeral, I mean. When my mother died, I felt so terrible I didn't speak to anyone in weeks."  
Summer was surprised. "Oh, I'm so sorry! When did that happen?"  
"Five months ago. Cancer. When it was discovered it had already spread, so there wasn't a chance for her."  
Summer's hand went to her chest. That poor guy. "Maybe the way it happened with my father was better. I mean, at least I didn't have to see him suffer."  
"Yeah, but you didn't have the chance to say goodbye either." Eric replied, his mouth full of cake again.  
Summer sadly looked on the table. "That's true," she whispered absent-mindly, her memories going back to that fateful day again.  
Eric remarked Summer's silence. One of his hands went over to hers. "I'm sorry, it shouldn't have sounded like that," he apologized. "I know this must be really hard for you."  
Summer's gaze went up to his beautiful blue eyes and she immediately got lost in them. She felt like she could trust him completely.  
And before she knew it, they kept talking the whole afternoon about their families, the loss of loved ones, and their lives.

When Summer checked her watch the next time, it was already six in the evening.

As usual, Seth sat at home, reading through dozens of files when Summer opened the front door.  
She saw him linger on the couch, his feet on the table, his head covered in masses of paper.  
"Hi Seth," she said, taking her coat off and joining her boyfriend in the living room.  
"Hey, where've you been?" Seth asked, his gaze not leaving the piece of paper he was holding. Summer was already used to that situation, so that didn't bother her that much.  
But after this question, she shifted in her seat uncomfortably. "Um, shopping with Coop", she replied. Why should she tell Seth the truth? Firstly, he wouldn't listen, and secondly, he didn't need to know things that were not worth worrying about.  
Seth snapped with his fingers. Summer wasn't sure if that was a reaction to what she had said before, or if Seth just had an idea about the file he was holding.  
When no further reaction came, Summer stood up and headed for the bathroom door. "I'm gonna go soak in a hot bath," she announced. All that she got for an answer was a nod.  
Sighing, Summer closed the door behind her and looked at herself in the mirror. Her thoughts went back to Eric and the funny afternoon they had spent together, and she felt her heart lighten up. Eric and her had connected immediately. He seemed to be the only person on this planet who understood her feelings. No wonder that she felt attracted to him.

Well, with robo-man on the living room couch, no one could blame her, right?

**Chapter 9**

The following weeks Summer had finally figured out everything about her father's belongings and was ready to face her own life again.   
Normally, that life should have contained Seth, and spending some time with him, but different than Summer, Seth still had tons of work to do, and now that his new comic book company, "Cohen Classic", had officially opened and was about to release its first graphic novel "Atomic County", he was at home and awake for 10 minutes each day.

And since Summer had now time to think, she found herself thinking about Eric almost all the time. And, worst of all, having coffee with him at least three times a week without telling Seth about it. Summer just couldn't forget how handsome and caring Eric was, and how he understood everything that was going on inside of her. She felt like a young girl who fell in love for the first time, and she didn't know how she could stop this from happening.

Summer knew she needed to talk to somebody about this situation, so she sat herself comfortably on the couch and called the number of her only friend she knew that could keep a secret.  
"'The Coop', Madison Baker speaking!" A voice that Summer didn't know sung into the receiver, trying to be over-friendly.  
"Yeah, hi, is Marissa there?"  
"Who is this, please?"  
Summer sighed angrily. It didn't matter who she was, she just wanted to talk to Marissa. She started to dislike the girl on the other line of the telephone immediately.  
"Summer," she replied shortspoken. "As in her best friend Summer."  
"Hold on a sec, I'll go get her!" The voice chimed.  
Summer rubbed her ear. That was a really loud person. And unnerving. And too curious. And too friendly. And…  
"Marissa Cooper."  
Summer's list of negative adjectives about the telephone girl was interrupted by Marissa's voice.  
"Coop, it's me. I need to talk to you,"  
"Sure, you wanna meet for lunch?"  
"No, can I talk to you right now? It's kinda urgent."  
Summer heard that a door was closed. Obviously, Marissa had locked noisy-telephone-girl out.  
"Okay, I'm alone now. What's up?" she heard Marissa say.  
"Okay Coop, first of all, who the hell is that noisy, over-friendly person that I just talked to?" Summer asked.  
Marissa laughed. "That's Madison. She's my new assistant."  
Summer's jaw fell. "What, you're substituting ME with a stupid person like HER?"  
Marissa laughed again. "She's not stupid, Sum. If you got to know her, you'd like her."  
"Yeah, whatever. Don't need to get to know her. I've got bigger issues here," she replied.   
"So?"  
Summer sighed. It took her only a few minutes to summarize the events between Eric and her that had taken place over the past few weeks.  
When she was finished, it was Marissa's turn to sigh. "So, what do you want me to say now?" she finally asked.   
"You should tell me that I'm going crazy, and that there's nothing happening between Eric and me," Summer replied.  
"Okay, honestly: I think that you just like the imagination of being with somebody new. I guess Eric just attracts you because you don't see much of Seth these days, and Eric is there and shares that part of your life with the loss of a parent and so on. "  
Summer remaint silent to let the words her best friend had just told her sink in.   
"Sum? You still there?"  
"Yeah, yeah, still here. So there's nothing to worry about?"  
Marissa sighed again. "Do you love Seth?"  
"What?"  
"Do you love Seth?"  
"Of course I do!" Summer replied without hesitating.  
"Fine. If you do, then try to figure things out with him. Don't let the attraction to Eric ruin your relationship with Seth. It wouldn't be worth it."  
Summer nodded and stared at her fingernails. "You're right, Coop. Thanks for your advice."  
On the other end of the line, Marissa smiled. "That's what friends are for," she replied.

Summer knew that Marissa was right. Maybe it was just the excitement of something new that made her like Eric so much.  
But if it was like that, why had she invited him over for dinner tonight? Invited him! Because she knew that Seth would be working late today. But she needed to tell Eric that they had to stop having those coffees together.

And when she opened the door and Eric stood in front of her, his blue eyes shining brighter than ever and his blonde hair hanging playfully into his face, she felt a huge shiver going through her body. What was it about him that she couldn't resist?  
Eric smiled at her, greeting her with a kiss on the cheek. "Hello. How are you?"  
Ashamed, Summer looked down to the floor. "I'm fine. Come in!" She gestured towards the living room. Eric looked around in the room, trying to spot Seth. Summer hadn't talked about her boyfriend much, he just knew that she had one. When he didn't see him, he turned to Summer.  
"Where's your boyfriend… what's his name…"  
"Seth. His name's Seth." Summer replied. "He's still at work. Said it's gonna be late today."  
Eric nodded and tried to identify from the smell that surrounded the whole room what Summer was cooking.  
Summer noticed that and smiled. "I won't tell you what it is." She teased him. "It's a surprise."  
Eric grinned. "Good. I like surprises."

They had Summer's homemade Gnocchi for dinner, a recipe she had been given a long time ago from Zach, one of her High School boyfriends. And after emptying almost two bottles of whine, both of them were really tipsy.  
After the dinner, they sat on the couch, and Summer lit some candles. For a long moment, neither of them said a thing. They just stared at each other, and Summer couldn't help but getting lost in Eric's eyes. She cleared her throat and looked away, her mind wandering off to Seth. She wondered what he was doing at the moment, and if he thought about her too.   
Eric's voice interrupted her. "So, Summer… can I ask you something?"  
Summer looked up. "Of course. What is it?"  
Eric hesitated. "I was wondering… I was wondering where all this should lead. What's gonna happen… with us. I mean, you have a boyfriend, and I kept wondering all evening why you've invited me here…"  
Summer swallowed hard. Those were the exact same thoughts that went through her mind.  
Eric sat himself closer to her. "You know, I didn't come here just to be filling your empty time when your boyfriend's at work. I really like you."  
Summer felt how her heart began to beat faster. "I like you too," she whispered.  
And before she could say anything more, she felt Eric's lips softly touching hers, giving her a careful kiss. Summer's brain told her to stop, but her senses didn't obey her brains anymore.  
So she kissed him back, more passionately. She didn't resist the kisses he gave her, and she didn't resist when she felt Eric's hands opening her pants. Summer guided her hands towards Eric's shirt, and opened some of the buttons. For a short moment, Summer stopped the kissing and stared at Eric. She needed to stop this. Now.  
But when Eric leant over and kissed her again, this time pulling her shirt over her head as he did so, Summer had lost the power of her brains completely.  
And she couldn't avert what was going to happen now.

The next morning Summer woke up next to Seth who was still sleeping peacefully beside her. She smiled sadly and crawled carefully out of the bed.  
She went down to the living room and opened the patio doors to let some of the fresh morning air come in.  
Slowly, Summer stepped on the patio and inhaled deeply. She couldn't believe what had happened the night before. She turned around to look at the living room couch which seemed like the worst object of sin to her at the moment. The couch had been the place where she had committed fraud to her boyfriend she loved. And that was the thing. She loved Seth. And there was no excuse for what she had done. But… there was also Eric, and Summer knew that she definitely felt more than pure attraction to him. It almost felt as if her soul was torn between two men.  
Summer sighed deeply. But why hadn't she listened to Marissa? Why, in the world, did she allow herself to make such a huge and terrible mistake?

And as if her thoughts weren't punishment enough, Summer suddenly felt Seth's arms around her. He gave her a kiss on the head.  
"Good morning, my love," he whispered into her ear.  
Such a simple sentence, but it make Summer feel completely shabby.  
"Good morning" she replied silently.  
Seth went around to face his girlfriend.  
Summer couldn't look Seth into his eyes. It was just too terrible.  
Seth lifted Summer's chin towards him, making her eyes meet his. "I wanna apologize." He said.  
Summer's heart felt as if it was being ripped out of her chest. He didn't have any reason to apologize. He hadn't done nothing wrong. It was her who had made the mistake.  
Summer collected her strength. "About what?"  
Seth smiled. "For abandoning you the last few weeks. For not being there for you when you needed me. I know that you're having a hard time. And I promised that I would be there for you, and I wasn't. But that's gonna change now. The first important weeks have passed, and I'll have much more time again. We can have some more time together."  
Summer had to look down at her feet to try to hide her embarrassment. There wasn't a thing about Seth that she didn't love. Right now, he had proved again that he was the best boyfriend a girl could wish for.  
"You don't have to apologize," she finally said, "running a company's hard work."  
Seth took her hands. "That's true. But there's no excuse that I wasn't there for you when you needed me. The mere thought of you sitting around alone all day made me sick. I promise you, this time, I won't go anywhere."  
Summer nodded, but kept looking down at her feet. She sighed heavily. "I appreciate that." She managed to say.  
Seth smiled happily and kissed her on the forehead. "Go get ready, I have a whole afternoon planned for us!" he chimed, already running back into the house.

Summer stared after him, feeling like the biggest sinner on the planet.  
She didn't deserve Seth. She didn't deserve to be loved by a wonderful person like him.  
Seth had trusted her, and she had misused that trust just because she had felt lonely.  
Suddenly, Summer heard Seth's voice out of the house. "Where are you? We need to get ready!"  
Summer stared into the distance. "I'm coming Cohen, I'm coming…"

Dear God, what had she done?

**Chapter 10**

Summer didn't know how she had gotten through this day without bursting into tears in front of Seth's eyes. She was just relieved when they finally arrived at home again.  
When she saw how Seth slumped down on the couch, getting comfortable and turning the tv on, she couldn't stand the shame anymore, and excused herself to the bathroom. 

Summer turned on the water of the shower to muffle the sound. Hastily, she dialed Marissa's number on her cell.  
"Hello?"  
"Coop, it's me."  
"Hey, Sum, did something happen? You sound very upset."  
Summer's head spun. "Yeah, something happened – and I need to talk about it, because otherwise, I'll go crazy!" she said in an urgent voice.  
"Sure, go ahead."  
Summer shook her head. "No, Coop, this can't be solved over the phone this time. I need to meet you in person."  
Marissa hesitated a moment. Hearing Summer so upset made her imagine the most terrible things. "Okay. When and where?"  
"At the Diner, in, like, ten minutes?"  
Marissa was surprised. This really had to be urgent. "All right. See you then."  
"Great."  
Before Marissa could reply, Summer had already hung up and started to get ready. 

Marissa and Summer were sitting at the group's favorite table in the Diner at the pier, each of them having a cup of coffee.  
Marissa examined Summer. She had never seen her best friend so upset, not even at her father's funeral. Summer's face was totally pale, and she kept drumming with her fingers on the table.  
Marissa reached over to her and grabbed her hand.  
"Stop it, it's making me nervous." She said. "Now won't you tell me what's going on?"  
Summer sighed and ran a hand through her thick dark hair.   
"You remember the conversation we had about Eric, and my feelings for him?"  
Marissa nodded, sensing some bad stuff coming up. "Yeah?"  
Summer took a deep breath. This had to be said now. "Well, I invited him over last night… to tell him that our meetings had to stop, but… "  
Summer felt Marissa's hand squeezing tighter. "But?"  
Summer shook her head, looking down. "I think I made a terrible mistake…" she whispered.  
Marissa's eyes widened and she pulled her hand away, trying to collect her thoughts. "You mean you kissed him?" she asked, even though she already knew that the issue they were talking about here was bigger.   
Summer shook her head.  
Marissa sighed and leant back against the chairs. "God, Sum, why in all world did you do this? Don't you know that Seth loves you?" she asked reproachful.  
Suddenly, all the tears that had piled up over the past couple of hours in Summer seemed to break free. "I know! I'm such a terrible person! You don't know how much I disgust myself for what I've done!" she sobbed.  
Marissa stood up and sat next to her. "I'm sorry," she softly said. Carefully, she laid an arm around Summer, trying to stop her from crying. She struggled to find the right words.  
"I'll be there for you, come what may," she simply said, hugging her best friend even tighter. "You'll see, everything's gonna be ok. You're gonna figure this out."  
Summer fought to find her self-control again. She slowly nodded. "All I want is that Seth forgives me…" she whispered. "But how can he when I can't forgive myself?"

It had been a few days now since Summer had told Marissa the truth about that fateful night. Now she waited for the right moment to tell Seth.   
Every second that Summer had to spend in his presence almost killed her. Everytime Seth touched or kissed her, the guilt almost ate her up.  
Summer would have given everything to make the things with Eric undone. But life wasn't so easy.

One evening, when Summer was cooking dinner in the kitchen and Seth read through some newspapers on the kitchen table, the telephone rang. Summer jumped as she was rid out of her thoughts. Just when she was about to move for the receiver, Seth jumped up from his seat and took the call. Summer listened carfully to find out who the person on the other end of the line was. The worst case would be if it was…  
"Summer, there's some guy named Eric for you. He says it's urgent." Seth held the receiver in front of her face.  
Summer blushed and held her breath. She washed her hands in the sink and took the receiver from Seth, trying to hide in the farest corner of the kitchen.  
"Hello?"  
"Hello Summer, it's Eric."  
"Why are you calling me? You know that he's at home! What do you want from me?" Summer asked, being shocked by the harshness of her voice.  
"I can understand that you're upset. And listen, I just called to apologize. I shouldn't have made a move on you, I mean, you have a boyfriend and everything. I'm an adult, I should really learn how to repress my feelings."  
Summer remained silent. She slowly answered. "Listen, it wasn't all your fault. Part of it was mine, too." Summer peeked over to Seth, checking if he listened. When she was sure that Seth was totally sunk in his newspaper, she went on. "We made a huge, huge mistake that night. And we should've known it better than that."  
"You're right. So… I hope that you'll accept my apology and we can remain friends?"  
Summer hesitated. "We'll see." She finally answered.  
Eric sighed. "Okay. And promise me you'll figure things out with your boyfriend."  
"All I can do is try." Summer replied. She raised her voice again. "So, thanks for calling! Have a nice evening! Bye!" Summer hung the receiver up, turning her attention back to her food.

Seth looked up from his newspaper. "Who is Eric? And what did he want?"  
Summer inhaled deeply and turned around to face her boyfriend. She sat down across from him and looked him deep in the eyes.  
Seth laid down the paper. "Why are you looking so serious?" he nervously asked.  
"I need to tell you something," Summer whispered, playing with her fingers. "Something really important."  
Seth's face became more and more concerned. "Yeah?"  
"So… Eric is the guy from my Dad's funeral… you know, the one who got me so upset."  
Seth nodded. "Yeah, I remember him."  
Summer nodded as well. "Uhm… I ran into him one day when I shopped for groceries, and he wanted to apologize for his rude behavior the other day."  
"That's very kind of him," Seth said.  
Summer took Seth's hands. "Seth, please don't interrupt me. This is hard enough."  
So Seth just nodded again and waited for more information.  
Only slowly, Summer continued. "Well, the meetings for coffee between him and me became more and more regular… and since I was alone all day, I enjoyed his company very much… we connected immediately, his mother died only a few months ago, and it felt like he was the only person who understood me…"  
Seth's breathing became heavier, his face more anxious. He seemed to sense what was about to come.  
"And one night, I invited him over for dinner. Here. In our house… And that's when…" Summer sighed. The truth was so hard to tell. And she didn't want to say the words because she knew that they would hurt Seth so much.  
"That's when… I… I slept with him." She finally managed to say. 

Summer watched Seth's face losing all of its color. Slowly, he pulled his hands out of her grip and began to rub them on his thighs. This couldn't be happening. That was just a nightmare, and he would wake up any moment now. But the pain felt real. He felt like someone had just stuck a knife right into his heart.  
He got up from his seat, not able to face Summer right now. His gaze wandered around the kitchen.  
When Summer got up, too, he held up his hand, gesturing her to sit down again. "Safe it," he said in a cold voice. "I need to be alone right now."  
And with that words, he ran out of the back door, leaving a desperate Summer sitting alone at the kitchen table.

Summer felt tears coming up. If it was the right thing to tell the truth, why did it hurt so much?

**Chapter 11**

The clock was ticking. It was the only sound Summer's ears could hear at the moment. It was almost three a.m., and Seth hadn't shown up yet.  
If somebody had told Summer to summarize her thoughts now, she wouldn't have known where to start first. Despite feeling like the worst girlfriend ever, she was also deeply worried about where Seth might have gone. It was so unlike him to get away for so long.   
She poured herself a cup of coffee and sat down at the table again. She would not get to bed before Seth had come home.  
But her eyelids were just so heavy… maybe if she just rested her head a little on the table… she was just so exhausted from worrying and crying… and before she could think the idea through, the world around her had already faded out. 

The sun shone broadly on Summer's face. She raised her head and looked around her. If Seth was home now? She slowly stood up and walked around the house. No sign of him. Then Summer saw that the door that led to the patio was wide open. She stepped outside. A warm breeze surrounded her, and the air smelt like the sea. If it hadn't been for her stupid mistake, this could have been a wonderful morning.   
Summer looked around the backyard and didn't find Seth there either. Frowning, she went to the backyard wicket. From there, she had an amazing look over the beach.  
Suddenly, she spotted him. He sat on one of the rocks that lay near the shore. Summer's heart almost broke when she saw the look on his face. She had never seen him so hurt.  
Summer needed to summon all her strength to be able to walk up to him.

Seth saw Summer walking up to him from the corner of his eye. He wasn't able to look at her. At least not now that everything was still so fresh.  
"I've been worried all night," he heard Summer's voice say.  
"'Bout what?"  
Summer sighed and sat next to him. "About where you've been."  
Seth nodded and continued to stare in the distance.  
"I've been thinking," he replied. He wasn't in the mood to talk right now.  
Summer sighed. "I don't know why I did this," she said. She softly laid a hand on Seth's shoulder. "It's unforgivable…"  
"You're right, it is." Seth answered. He turned towards her. "You know, from all the things I've ever done to you, nothing was so terrible than what you did to me that night."  
Summer slowly moved her hand away from Seth's shoulder and fought some tears. "Seth, you don't know how awful I feel, I…"  
"Don't wanna hear it."  
Summer hesitated. Seth's behavior really hurt her, but according to her self-justice, she didn't deserve any better.  
Seth stood up. "Look, this is simple. I trusted you, and you misused my trust. I was really busy at work, and the first thing that comes to your mind is to run into someone else's arms."  
"Seth, no…"  
"I said I don't wanna hear it." He stared onto the ocean, seeming to be totally lost in thought. "Listen, I can't be in your presence right now. I'll be home sometime tonight."  
Summer watched as Seth walked towards the house, and away from her. She buried her head in her hands and tried to stop the tears that came. 

Marissa and Madison had just finished to put the main decorations up when Marissa went over to the door of the shop and opened it ceremonially. The girls smiled at each other.  
"Okay, we're ready for our first customer!" Marissa chimed and clapped her hands. She went back to join Madison behind the counter that stood in the middle of the shop. Both of them stared stiffly to the door, waiting for somebody to come in.  
"I wonder who's gonna be the first customer." Madison said, excited.  
"Yeah, me too." Marissa answered. Suddenly, she saw a very familiar figure standing in the doorway. He looked totally devastated. Marissa immediately knew that Summer had finally told him.  
She cleared her throat and told Madison to check if everything in the storage was fine.  
After that, she gestured Seth to come in.

Seth sat down on one of the chairs that were distributed in the whole room, Marissa next to him.  
"So she told you?" Marissa kindly asked.  
Seth looked up. "You knew?"  
Marissa bit her lip. "Kind of…" she carefully said, her gaze searching for anything but Seth's eyes.  
"She rather told you than me. And I'm her boyfriend. At least I guess that I am." Seth noticed dryly.  
„Listen, it's easier to talk from girl to girl about stuff like that," Marissa explained. "She feels really awful."  
Seth nodded. "I know." He said. He could see it in every of Summer's moves and gestures how terrible she felt. "But… do you know if she loves that guy?"  
Marissa shrugged. "Honestly, I don't know. She told me that she loves you."  
"I'm not sure if I should believe that," Seth replied.  
Marissa laid a hand on Seth's arm. "Listen, Seth, if one thing is for sure, then it is that she really loves you."  
"Marissa? There's somebody on the phone for you!" Madison's voice came from the storage.  
Marissa scratched her head. "Um, could you tell him that I'll call back later?"  
"I'm sorry, I already did. He says it's urgent."  
Marissa sighed and stood up. "Is it ok if I leave you alone for a moment?"  
Seth nodded and gestured her to go ahead. "I won't be running."  
Marissa smiled and got up. She went over to Madison and pointed to Seth. "Maddy, this is Seth, my boyfriend's brother. Seth, this is Madison." She introduced the two of them and disappeared into the back of the shop.

Madison smiled shyly at Seth. She stood somewhat lost behind the counter, not really knowing what to do.  
Seth looked at her. She seemed to be really nice. And she looked cute with her dark blue eyes and her long blonde hair that was tied up in a ponytail. Seth wasn't really into blondes, but that girl he liked from the very beginning.  
He saw how Madison nervously tapped with her fingers on the counter. He had to smile. "You know, if you treat all of your customers like that, you won't be getting rich with that thing here," he said.   
Madison laughed. "I'm sorry, it's our opening day and, well… it's our opening day."  
Seth smiled, although his heart felt heavy.  
Madison seemed to have noticed that something was bothering Seth.  
She went over to him and sat opposite of him. "You look very stiff."  
Seth nodded. "That's because I am." He simply answered.  
"Um… do you mind if I asked what's bothering you?"  
Seth thought for a moment. This really wasn't everybody else's business, but after all those years of growing up, he was still Seth Cohen. And if there was one thing about Seth Cohen that never changed it was the fact that he loved to talk about himself. So he took Madison's offer and started. "Well, I have kind of problems with my girlfriend," he said.  
Madison nodded, her ponytail swinging back and forth as she did so. "She cheated on you."  
Seth's eyes grew bigger. He hadn't said a word about Summer and Eric, and she already knew. "Is this, like, written on my face?" he asked jokingly.  
Madison shyly shook her head. "No. It's just because… well, the same thing happened to me a few months ago and I looked exactly a wreck like you."  
"Well, thanks for the compliment."  
Madison laughed. "No, I mean… I can almost feel how much you're hurting."  
Seth looked at Madison, frowning. Was there a secret link between that girl and him or why did he feel like she understood him completely?  
"So, and did you guys make up?" he asked curiously.  
Madison shook her head. "No. We split. It was better for both of us. You know, if the trust in your partner is so heavily ruined, it doesn't make sense to go on and try to figure it out." She giggled nervously.  
Seth took a breath and was just about to reply when Marissa jumped out from behind the shop and joined them.  
"Okay, everything's settled. Oh, I see you two are talking?"  
Madison smiled and got up. "Yeah, we were just getting to know each other," she said. "Well, if you want to talk, you know where I work." She added in Seth's direction.  
Seth nodded and got up as well.  
Marissa was slightly confused. "Hey Seth, are you leaving? I thought you wanted to talk…"  
"No, it's okay. I need to figure this thing out by myself. But thanks for listening. And say hi to Ryan for me."  
Marissa nodded and watched Seth walking out of the shop, wondering what Madison and he had talked about.

In front of the shop, Seth leant against a wall. His head was spinning from all the thougths that were mixed up in there. He didn't want to admit it, but deep down he knew that Madison was right. He needed to find out if he still trusted Summer. The mere thought of it made his heart feel as if it was about to break.  
"Why have you done this, Summer?" he whispered. "Why have you done this to me?"

**Chapter 12**

Things between Summer and Seth were very strange the following days. They tried to get along, but Seth was sleeping in the guest room at night and they hardly talked, each of them hanging on to their own thoughts all the time. But despite all this, Summer's job in Seth's comic book company was still free for her and even if the two of them had private problems, Summer started to work at "Cohen Classic". But still, this didn't make things easier.  
Summer had been receiving dozens of eMails from Eric who kept apologizing and asking for a new meeting to say goodbye. Summer had done her best to avoid to answer him so far. She didn't feel like doing anything these days.  
Seth's mind was working almost all the time. He had to make a decision how their relationship would go on. He didn't talk to anybody about what was going on in his mind. He knew that he had to make this decision on his own.

One evening, Summer sat on the beach in a canvas chair, watching the sun setting on the horizon. She wondered about their situation. It didn't feel like Seth would be able to forgive her anytime soon. Maybe all they needed was a break to see how much they loved each other. Or maybe they didn't. Summer had never felt so helpless in her whole life.  
Suddenly, she saw Seth taking place beside her, sighing deeply.  
She looked over to him. "Hi."  
Seth nodded. "Hi. We need to talk."  
Summer nodded too. "Okay."  
"This is not easy…"  
"I know."  
Seth sighed. "Summer, I want you to imagine one thing."  
"What?"  
"Imagine that it was me who cheated on you. Would you be able to live with me, look me in the eye, touch me without having the feeling that the other one is always there?"  
Summer looked onto her hands, feeling ashamed. "I don't know." She answered honestly. "I think it would be hard…"  
Seth nodded again. "You're right. It's damn hard. I tried my best to understand why you did this… and it seems like there is no explanation."  
Summer shook her head sadly. "I don't have any explanation myself."  
Seth sighed. He knew that what he was going to say would break Summer's heart. "I want to forgive you, Summer. And I want to forget. And I want everything to go back to normal."  
Summer looked at him exspectantly. Maybe Seth wanted to give both of them a chance to start all over again.  
Seth looked away and stared into the distance. "But I can't. Not now. I know that you get all those messages from him these days, and I just can't take this situation any longer."  
Summer's heart beated faster. "So, you wanna say that you wanna break us up?"  
Seth bit his bottom lip. "Yeah." He sadly whispered.  
Summer felt as if someone had taken her the air to breathe. Tears came to her eyes as she tried to fix what was left from their relationship. She sat up straight. "But, Seth… don't you wanna give us another chance?"  
"As I said before, I can't."  
Tears came running down Summer's cheeks. "So… it's over? Just like that?"  
Seth nodded. He had to fight tears as well. "I don't trust you anymore…" he had to stop in the middle of the sentence to stop himself from crying.  
Summer shook her head and began to weep. Deep down in her heart she had seen this coming. The way Seth had been acting all the days before, the hurt look on his face everytime they talked… but now that her worst fears became reality, all she felt was emptiness.  
For a long time, both of them sat there, hanging on to their own thoughts and watched the sun setting in the sky.  
Seth was the first who found his speech again. "I don't wanna lose you, Summer. I promise I'll try my best to let us stay friends."  
"I can't believe this… it was just a single mistake I made, and it's gonna break up all those years we've had together?" Summer was desperate.  
Seth sighed deeply. "I'm sorry." He said, looking down at his hands.   
Summer reached out for Seth's hands and was shocked when he pulled them away. She went through her hair with a hand. "Don't you love me anymore?"  
Now Seth's strength faded as well. Tiny tears came running down his cheeks. "The bad part of this is that I do. But when the person you love the most hurts you so bad, love isn't enough. Not for me."  
Summer nodded and got up her feet. "You wanna know what's even worse?" She gave him a soft kiss on the cheek, a kiss that would maybe be their last forever. "I love you, too."  
When Seth turned his head away, Summer knew it was time to go. She had known Seth for such a long time now and she was aware of the fact that if he once made a decision, nothing would change that. Seth had never been the one who made rushed decisions.   
Bad luck for her that this time, Seth's stubbornness caused them to break up.

Just one day after Seth's fateful decision, Summer found herself packing all of her belongings into boxes. She and Seth had discussed the breaking up almost all night and after each of them had outlined their thoughts, they both knew that a break from each other was the only solution. Summer had made a huge mistake, and Seth couldn't trust her anymore.

When Summer looked around the almost empty living room, her heart felt incredibly heavy. The last tile she packed into her boxes was a picture of Seth and her at the day of their graduation. They hugged tightly and looked so happy then. Summer let out a bitter laugh when she thought how fast her life had changed since graduation. Not even six months had been passing by, and in those six months, her whole life had been torn apart. She didn't only have to bury her father, she had also lost her new home, and  
worst of all, her boyfriend she loved.  
Seth came down from upstairs, carrying one of his boxes. The only good thing about the breaking up-thing was that his mother had organized apartments for both of them. Summer smiled at him sadly. Slowly, she went over to him. "Do you really think we need to do this?" she carefully asked.  
Seth let out a sigh. "I can't live in this situation, Summer. And right now, the thought of you being with that other man hugely overweighs my feelings for you. Before we can even start thinking of the both of us, I need to find my trust in you again. And you know that this is gonna take much time."  
Summer nodded sadly. She turned away and carefully pasted the last of her boxes. When she was finished, she sighed and looked at Seth. "So this is it, then," she said.  
Seth sighed as well. "This is it."  
Both of them stared at the empty house. And even if Seth tried to hide it, Summer knew that at the moment, he had the same feelings as her. How could, in comparison to a whole five years Seth and Summer had been together, such a short event cause so huge changes? When they started going to college, both of them thought that they would stay together forever. But growing up showed them how life was really going.  
Summer had made an adult's decision and she knew she had to face an adult's consequences.  
Giving the room a last glance, Summer slowly walked up to the door. She went to her car and put the box in it. The furniture had been split in two halves and was already on its way to its new apartments.  
A few minutes after Summer, Seth came out of the house, closing the door for one last time.  
The both of them just looked at each other, trying to hide how much they suffered from this situation. Seth held up a hand and waved over to Summer. Summer had to fight tears when she saw his thin figure standing so lost in the doorway. "Goodbye, Seth." She whispered, the words almost tearing up her heart.  
Seth nodded and bit his lip. A single tear ran down his cheek. "Goodbye, Summer."

**Chapter 13**

Summer was devastated. One week after the break up, she sat in her new living room on her old couch, staring out of the window. She couldn't stop wondering what Seth was doing at the moment. Marissa had told her that he went out a lot with Ryan, going to the beach or seeing a movie, just to get his mind off of things.  
Despite thinking about Seth, she wondered what Eric was doing all the time. Now she had finally time to reply to his emails, but she didn't feel like it.  
And if it hadn't been for Eric calling her, she probably wouldn't have thought of seeing him ever again.

When her cell phone rang, and Summer saw that it was Eric, her mood lightened up immediately. She could almost see his pretty blue eyes sparkling towards her.  
They had arranged a meeting at the Diner at the pier for some coffee. Summer really needed to talk to somebody about Seth. And since Marissa was busy almost all the time, Summer decided to talk to Eric. She really liked him after all, because it hadn't been his fault that the "thing" had happened. She considered it only her fault.

Eric had never been to the Diner with the group, but when Summer spotted him sitting at their favorite table, she couldn't help but smile. She slowly walked up to him. Eric stood up and gave her a kiss on the cheek, just as he always had done at their secret coffee meetings.  
They sat down. Eric smiled at Summer, causing her feelings to go on a rollercoaster. "I'm sorry to hear about you and your boyfriend," Eric said.  
Summer nodded. "Thanks."  
Eric nodded as well and nervously took a sip of his coffee. "So, um, how've you been the past couple of days?"  
Summer raised her eyebrows. "I think you can see how I am these days." She answered.  
Eric laughed. "You look beautiful," he whispered, and his hand neared Summer's.  
She pulled her hand off the table very quickly. "Eric, listen… I … I'm just coming out of a relationship that meant the world to me… maybe we could slow down this whole thing…"  
Eric pulled his hand back as well. "Of course. Not a problem. I'll be happy to wait for you."  
Wait for you? The sentence echoed in Summer's head. Did she even want Eric to wait for her? She had not given up hope that one day, Seth would be able to forgive her and they would be back together. Summer examined Eric's face. Even if he was not smiling, you could easily see the cute dimples in Eric's cheeks. His blonde hair shone almost like gold, and his blue eyes seemed to be as deep as the sea.  
Absent-mindly, Summer let out a huge sigh. When she was with Eric, she felt incredibly attracted to him. He understood each of her thoughts, and he was a real gentleman. Summer was sure that she had a huge crush on Eric.  
And when she was with Seth, she felt safety, and the most important of all, she felt love. An image of Seth hopped into her mind, causing her to stand up quickly. What was she even doing here?  
"Eric, I need to go. And please don't call me again." She said, running out of the Diner to her car. She needed to see Seth. He needed him to see how much she still loved him.

Seth and Ryan had been seeing almost every movie that was in the theaters that week. They had eaten almost every food that was on the menue of the Diner at the pier.  
Today would again be such a day. The two of them would go see a movie, and afterwards they would grab a bite. Seth sighed as he pulled into the parking lot in front of Marissa's fashion store where he was supposed to meet Ryan.  
Although Ryan was the best brother one could imagine and although he was always there for him, he had never felt so incredibly lonely in his entire life. Among the loneliness there was the pain he felt every time he thought about Summer, and what she had done.  
Seth hauled himself out of the car, and entered the store, his gaze searching for Ryan. There were a few customers searching through the hat stands, but there was no one he knew. Not even Marissa was to be seen anywhere. Seth shrugged and walked up to the counter. He would just wait there. 

Suddenly, a blonde head popped up from underneath the counter, throwing a bunch of scarves onto it, half of them hitting Seth.  
Seth tried to free himself from the scarves with his hands, waving about wildly with his arms.  
"Help!" he shouted, trying to get rid of the clothes. The blonde head laughed out loud and came around the counter to help Seth free himself. When Seth's eyesight had been given back to him, he saw Madison standing in front of him, grinning broadly. "Wow, I never knew I was such a good manhunter!" she giggled and picked up the rest of the scarves that had been sent onto the floor.  
"And I was just wondering what kind of snakes hang around here," Seth joked and smiled at her.  
Madison smiled back and examined Seth. "Did she break up with you?" she asked, her eyes narrowing.  
Seth frowned. "Who?"  
Madison laughed. "You know who! Your girlfriend… what's her name?"  
"Summer." Seth replied. Even the sound of her name made his heart ache heavily. Maybe he shouldn't have been so hard on her. Maybe they should have just given the whole thing another try.  
Seth was ripped out of his thoughts when he saw Madison's hand waving in front of his face. "Hello, somebody there?"  
Seth focused on the cute little face standing in front of him. "Um, yeah no… she didn't break up with me. I broke up with her." He sadly said, looking onto the floor.  
Madison's gaze softened. She put a hand on Seth's shoulder, trying to comfort him. "I'm so sorry…" she said. "But believe me, it was for the best. Once the trust is ruined, there's nothing that can fix it again."  
Seth nodded and sighed. "Then why do I feel like I've done the wrong thing?"  
"Because you keep searching for the mistakes you made. But believe me, if your partner cheats on you, the mistake's up to him, not to you. I'm sure you've done nothing wrong."  
Seth pressed his lips together, his gaze darkening.  
Madison bent her head and smiled at Seth. "Hey, lighten up!" she said. "You know what you need? You need to get your mind off things."  
Seth nodded. "Believe me, I've tried. I have seen like every movie on the planet, and I've tasted like every food that exists in the country. Nothing worked."  
Madison raised her forefinger and went around the counter again. "I know what you need!" she chimed, bending underneath the counter, grabbing her purse and joining Seth again.  
Seth frowned. "And that would be…"  
"You need to go sailing! I tell you, it's the best thing to keep your mind off everyhting!"  
Seth's gaze lightened up again. He stared at Madison disbelieving. "You wanna tell me you like sailing?" he said.  
Madison nodded. "Totally! I've been sailing since I was a little child. I have my own boat. We could go for a cruise around the bay or so. Balboa Island. Just talking and having fun. I tell you, you'll feel like new born by tomorrow."  
Seth laughed and shook his head. "Madison, I-"  
Madison took Seth's hand. "Just as friends." she said and smiled at him.  
"This is crazy," Seth replied. "But, what do I have to lose?"  
Madison smiled back at Seth and linked her arm in his. "So let's go! I'll call it a day now."  
And without even thinking about Ryan or Marissa or anybody else, the two of them were on their way to Seth's car, laughing and seeming happy.

Summer saw the whole scenario from the driver's seat of her car. She knew Seth would be meeting Ryan at "The Coop", so she would just wait in the parking lot until the boys came out, and confront Seth then.  
But when she saw Seth with that beautiful tall blonde, laughing and and with linked arms, she knew she was too late. Her heart ached, and she quickly ignited the engine of her silver BMW, driving in an incredible fast speed back to the Diner. If she was lucky, Eric would still be there.  
When she arrived at the parking lot of the Diner, she jumped out of her car, running into the restaurant and searching for Eric. He was just about to leave, giving the waitress her money. Summer ran up to him and spun him around. Totally out of breath, she leant over and kissed Eric on the lips, long and passionate. When the kiss was over, Eric leant back and examined Summer, frowning. "What…"  
Summer put a hand on Eric's mouth to stop him from talking. "You're done waiting for me." She said, her face nearing his again. "I'm all yours."  
And even though her mouth said the words, her heart felt like breaking into pieces when the image of Seth leaving the shop with that blonde girl came back to her mind.  
But if Seth could move on so fast, she could move on too.

**Chapter 14**

It still felt strange, seeing Seth and Madison so happy together. They were dancing very closely, whispering into each other's ears from time to time. Summer stood on the edge of the dancefloor and watched them. The annual dance for Independence Day that was held by many of the famous Newpsies brought the two new couples together. Summer had seen Seth before, she had seen Madison before, and she knew that they were a couple, a very happy couple, but she had never seen them doing all of that couple-stuff until now. She was almost proud of herself that she didn't feel any jealousy when she watched Seth and his new girlfriend dancing. Okay, there was jealousy, but she was able to control it now. The consequences of her terrible mistake would hunt her for the rest of her life, and she had to live with it, whether she wanted it or not.  
Suddenly, Summer felt Eric's arms embracing her from behind, just like Seth had always done it when they had been still together. And even though Summer's heart still felt sad when she thought back to her happy times with Seth, she smiled as Eric kissed her softly on the cheek. "You wanna dance?"  
Summer nodded. "Sure."  
As they approached Seth and Madison, Seth smiled at her. It was a warm smile, one that he hadn't given her since the day they had broken up. Summer felt her heart lighten up a bit and smiled back. Eric spun her around and the magical eye contact between her and Seth was broken.  
Summer leant closer into Eric's chest. She was still amazed by how fast her new situation had figured itself out. Just a few weeks after she and Eric had officially become a couple, Summer had moved into Eric's cute little house at the beach. Almost simultaneously, Seth and Madison had rented themselves a beautiful penthouse that gave an amazing view over Newport and the beach.  
While Summer wasn't sure about Seth's feelings towards Madison, she knew that she adored Eric a lot, and that she really felt comfortable whenever she was with him. But she was also aware that she didn't love him. Until now, Summer was convinced that she could never love a person like she had loved Seth, the one and only love of her life. But at least, both of them were content in their new relationships, and that meant a lot.  
Eric twirled Summer around and she accidentally bumped into Seth who did the same with Madison.  
Summer turned around and looked into Seth's dark brown eyes, smiling excusingly at him. Seth smiled back. He leant over to her and whispered in her ear. "Meet me on the balcony, in ten minutes."  
Summer nodded and was moved away by Eric again. Her head was spinning. What did Seth want from her? Did he want them to give their love another try? But why would he seem so happy with Madison if he wanted to get back together with her?

It seemed almost like an eternity until the ten minutes were over. Summer excused herself from Eric to the bathroom and made her way out on the balcony.  
Seth was already standing there, propping his hands on the balustrade and staring into the cloud-free sky.  
When he heard the sound of Summer's shoes, he turned around and smiled at her.  
Shyly, Summer went up to Seth and joined him. Seth smiled warmly at her.  
"It's a great dance, don't you think?" he said, looking back into the hall where the dance was held.  
Summer frowned and nodded. "It is. Um, Cohen…"  
"I guess you wonder what I want from you." Seth said and turned his gaze back into the sky.  
Summer shifted on her feet uncomfortably. "Kind of," she admitted.  
Suddenly, a new song was played in the dance hall. Summer recognized it from miscellaneous dances at High School. It was Gwen Stefani's "Cool".   
Just when the singer started, Seth talked again. "Remember the night I broke up with you?" he asked and faced her.  
Summer smiled sadly. "I do." She replied.  
Seth sighed. "And you remember that I told you then that I want to forgive you, but I can't?"  
Summer nodded. "Yeah."  
The music softly surrounded the scenery both of them were in.

_And it's such a miracle that you and me are still good friends  
And after all that we've been through  
I know we're cool_

Seth continued to talk. "I thought about that a lot the past couple of weeks. Maybe part of the whole thing was my fault, too. I abandoned you for work the time when you needed me the most."  
Summer laid a hand on Seth's arm. "That was no reason for me to run into somebody else's arms." She said.  
Seth nodded. "Well, that's true. But you and me… we've been through so much together… and I don't see why a thing like that should come between us."  
Summer frowned. "What do you mean?"  
"I want to forgive you, and I know that I'll have to work hard, but after all, I will be able to."  
Summer's heart jumped. That had been the one thing she had been wishing for since the day the mistake with Eric had happened.

_And I'll be happy for you  
If you can be happy for me_

"So… you wanna try us again?" she carefully asked.  
Seth firmly shook his head. "No. I want us to be friends. I really do."

_Circles and triangles and now we're hanging out with your new girlfriend  
And so far from where we've been  
I know we're cool_

Summer sighed and nodded. She smiled happily at Seth. "I'm glad that you can finally forigve me," she said. "You must know that I'm gonna have to live with it for the rest of my life."  
Seth smiled. "Don't torture yourself with it anymore," he said. "Forgiven and forgotten."  
Summer was amazed by the huge strength Seth must have brought up to forgive her. She was the luckiest girl in the world to have such a good friend.  
"I know it's not gonna be easy for us," she said. "But I'm sure we're gonna make it."  
They smiled at each other warmly. Seth slowly turned around again and watched the stars in the sky.  
Summer looked at him for a while, knowing that she would never be able to stop loving him. He had been and still was, after all, her first and only love.  
Sighing, she slowly faced the stars as well.

For a long moment, Seth and Summer stared at the star-lit sky, each of them hanging on to their own thoughts. They could make it as friends if they wanted to. And Seth was right. They had been through too much together to give up on each other now.  
Both of them stood next to each other until the song in the background faded out.

_And after all that we've been through  
I know we're cool…_

Summer sighed. They were cool. Seth had forgiven her.  
And after all that had happened, that was the most important thing.

**_To be continued in „I Belong To You"..._**


End file.
